<p>I am planning on studying biomedical engineering and am trying to weigh cost benefit options. I love the idea of being engineer I know enough to know that's what I want to do for undergrad but I am a history and economics nerd too. I am struggling with the idea of living with 4000 other engineers at WPI and just them as to the very different social atmosphere of Boston and Tufts in general. At this point some of my major decision making relies on that and the BME programs specifically. Anything any one can tell me is much appreciated.</p>
<p>I had similar motivations for applying to Tufts and for not even visiting WPI. The environment at Tufts is very interdisciplinary and gives you the opportunity (if you take it) to interact with a much wider range of students and pursue a much more varied course of study.</p>
<p>Because I’ve never been there I can’t comment directly on the campus or campus life, but Worcester is… Worcester.</p>
<p>Given the way you worded your post, you should apply to Tufts and similar schools and avoid RPI, WPI etc.
My son got into both Tufts and WPI and chose WPI because he actually preferred the nerdier environment at WPI. But you sound like you are looking for the opposite and there are plenty of schools you can apply to. So you don’t need to justify it…
BTW - WPI students are not all engineering students, some of them are science students ;)</p>
<p>Stay overnight at both schools. I’m not sure what you mean by the “social atmosphere” of living with 4,000 engineers - yes, engineers are generally hard-working, don’t party much, and take school seriously, but you’ll get the same thing at Tufts. I promise you, engineer =/= antisocial nerd. </p>
<p>Beyond that, how much do you want to study history, economics, and engineering? How much time do you think you’ll have in a day, above and beyond your engineering classes? </p>
<p>How important is BME to you? </p>
<p>You say that cost is a factor - is that literal cost or figurative cost? If it’s literal, please apply to both, be accepted by both, and have financial aid packages in hand before trying to make a decision. :)</p>
<p>MY boyfriend attends WPI and I am hoping to transfer to Tufts next Fall. Both are beautiful campuses. WPI does have a nerdier environment for sure but theres plenty of variety in who could hang out with. The fraternities have parties all the time and, if you can get an invite, it definitely seems like a totally normal mix of people at these parties - and they are awesome (if you’re looking for parties). I dont know why everyone hates on Worcester - I actually like that it’s a pretty big city and does have a lot going on … that being said be careful which streets you walk down alone. Tufts on the other hand is also gorgeous, academic and well placed - note that I am hoping to transfer there. Both are great schools with great reputations. Visit each and get your own personal feel for it.</p>
<p>I liked WPI very much when I visited with my older son many years ago. It clearly had a lively theater scene, and all the students we met loved it. Worcester is Worcester (great museum of Arms and Armor though!), but there’s nice hiking nearby, it’s not so far from Boston that you can’t go in for a day on the weekend and generally was not nearly as bad as we had been led to believe. Theoretically you can make use of the five college consortium (though no idea how that works with WPI’s academic calendar.) I thought the WPI campus was very pretty, but it felt a little too small to me. I’m actually surprised to hear it has almost 4000 students.</p>
<p>
Higgins Armory Museum will be closing down soon.</p>
<p>That said, Worcester is growing as a city and is getting a much more vibrant scene. Many companies are saving on costs and moving out that way; restaurants, theatre, dance, and culture are following.</p>
<p>Yes, it’s a bummer about the Higgins Armory Museum closing but they are transferring the collection to the Worcester Art Museum (which, by the way) is about 2 blocks away from WPI’s campus. I think students get in for free.
Worcester is definitely a more interesting city than we had realized and it is definitely on the upswing.
As for the liberal arts offerings - my son has been impressed with the professors he has had in economics, German, and English - though clearly the offerings are not as extensive as at Tufts. But there is way more than he could ever have time to take anyway!</p>
<p>I’ve been admitted to both schools and I have two engineers for parents so I’m sort of aware of how engineering students are, I’m concerned about the social atmosphere over all. It is a literal cost factor and BME is most definitely what I want to do.</p>
<p>See my post on Tufts vs Northwestern. </p>
<p>I had family members who attended both MIT and Tufts. I had extensive visits to both and thought Tufts was a better fit for me because it offered an environment closer to the real world (i.e. engineering minority) and more breadth. That is not always the right decision for everybody. It all depends on the person. It worked out well for me. It better matched my personality and the liberal arts exposure paid dividends later in my career.
I augmented my undergrad degree with a masters.</p>